News and views from Alain Coppey

Kickboxing world champion in 2007 and 2008, Alain Coppey has, as the saying goes, hung up his boots. Currently working in an electrical business, the Lausannois still has a passion for his sport.

At the National Sporting Club de Sévelin, his name demands respect. Naturally. Double kickboxing world champion in 2007 and 2008, Alain Coppey has worn the colours of his club, city and country right to the very highest level in a sport less well-known than tennis or football. To round off his career in style, Alain Coppey had chosen to defend his world title in Lausanne. In his city, in Vallée de la Jeunesse. In front of his friends and family. Up against the American Bobby “Jackhammer” Campbell, the native of Vaud brilliantly defended his title. And, as he had stressed before the fight, this match was his last. “For my last fight, I wanted it to be a celebration,” he admits. “Besides, I was less well prepared than for my first title. I had to prepare for the event personally and I often had my training disrupted, but I don’t regret it.”

“From a sporting point of view, this is a city for those who love the effort. Slope, rhythm changes, the lake, the nature of wood Chalet-à-Gobet, I do not see where to find a better living.”

A single K.O.

A child of Renens, Alain Coppey began martial arts at the age of 13 despite the reticence of his parents. “My mother never liked kickboxing,” he smiles. “As regards my father, he wanted to watch, without really liking what he was seeing. But I understand them. There is this fear of the K.O. that you can’t get out of your mind.” After a career of nearly 20 years, Alain Coppey has only suffered a single K.O., however: “It was during the amateur world championships. I took a blow and it was as if someone had turned out the lights. I regained consciousness in the dressing room and I had forgotten what had just happened. I was ready to leave for the ring. It was my guys in the corner who explained to me what had just happened several minutes before.”

Having now left the ring, the double world champion offers advice to younger people: “Passing on my knowledge and experience is part of my philosophy. Young people trust me.”

Nights out at MAD

Today, the advent of mixed martial arts doesn’t please the soon to be 37-year-old dad: “When I started, my wish was to change the image of boxing, that we find a bit of nobility in fighting sports. With these extremely violent sports, I hardly see anything other than pure aggression. To be able to kick a man on the ground in the head, that doesn’t mean anything.”

Originally from Valais, it didn’t take long for Alain Coppey to feel at home in Lausanne. “It’s my city. Everything is at my fingertips. When you become a father, you think about what is best for your children and Lausanne is perfect. From a sporting point of view, it’s a city made for those who like activity. With the slopes, the changing rhythms, the lake, the nature in the woods at Chalet-à-Gobet, it’s hard to find a better living environment.” A bon viveur, the Vaudois boxer enjoys nights out at Mad, one of the highlights of Lausanne nightlife. “I have spent a lot of nights there,” he concludes. “But since the birth of my son, I’ve been going there less often.”

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